Study of a carbon dioxide ring laser gyroscope

We have experimentally investigated a basic ring laser gyroscope (RLG) with carbon dioxide gain, and studied the prospects of developing a practical CO2 RLG. Rotation sensing was demonstrated on a number of transitions in the 9.4 μm and 10.4 μm vibration-rotation bands. Gyro response is discussed with regard to lock-in, bias, homogeneous broadening effects, and high power operation. We show that such a system may offer important advantages over standard helium-neon RLGs, including reduced quantum limit and backscattering. The prospects and possible approaches for developing a practical high power CO2 RLG are discussed, and a method of eliminating cross-saturation at high pressure is proposed and analyzed.